To Squash a Spider
by BridgeBetweenReality
Summary: Two months after Optimus had died, things were quiet on Cybertron. That was, until Starscream suddenly turned up, wounded and almost dead. Arcee absolutely did't want to help him, but there were worse things than seekers. Those would be spiders.
1. Chapter 1

**Before I begin with the new story, I would want to thank Bee4ever, who gave me the idea of this new story, and the title. Thank you so much, without you I wouldn't be publishing this right now! ^^ Now, off with the first chapter!**

…

Arcee was driving on a bridge, lost in her thoughts. She came from seeing Bulkhead and the reconstruction of some buildings, and was now driving towards the warship. She hadn't asked for a groundbridge, because she had to set her mind in order. Though things has calmed down on Cybertron and there hadn't happened much, her thoughts hadn't calmed down for the slightest bit. It had been two months since the war had ended and Optimus had died. A pain went through her systems as she thought of him. They hadn't been lovers or partners, but she had cared a lot about the Prime. He had been a true leader, and more important, family. _'It isn't fair' _she remembered herself saying. _'How many more times are we going to have to save a world? Have to fight for the survival of our home?' _It turned out to be one time too much. Suddenly, she missed Jack. He had always been able to cheer her up, no matter how down she had been. She decided to go visit him some time soon. Things were quiet on Cybertron, and if the Autobots would need her, she would only be a spacebridge away. She approached the warship and transformed, wondering how he frag she was going to get up there.

She was about to call for a groundbridge, when suddenly a voice behind her said: "Allow me." She was picked up from the ground and merely a few seconds later, she stood at the entrance of the warship.

"What the…" she grumbled, when the Cybertronian jet next to her transformed. "Megatron," she said with narrowed eyes, "never –ever- do that again." He grinned and she continued. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"My supply of energon is nearly deplete, and I have come to ask you if I could have some more" he said as they entered.

"Yeah, because we just _happen _to have dark energon lying around."

"I do not longer function on dark energon. I use the regular energon now."

"Oh…" she said, a bit startled. "You should ask Ultra Magnus. If he agrees, you'll get some."

"Do you think I should get some energon?" he asked in a strangely curious way.

She bit her lip for a second, not really knowing how to answer. "I will never forget what you did to us. To Cybertron. I couldn't, even if I would want to." She paused for a moment, and then continued. "But Optimus died believing in peace. Believing in a united Cybertron. So yes, I do. Not because you deserve it, but because Optimus would want it so."

They had arrived at the bridge, and Megatron entered after Arcee. Ultra Magnus, Smokescreen and Knockout were there, discussing something, but they went silent when they saw the former warlord enter. Knockout shifted awkwardly when his former leader asked the same question he had asked Arcee a few moments earlier, only Ultra Magnus responded earlier than the femme had done.

"You will receive the same amount of energon anyone else does when they come and ask for it. Smokescreen, Knockout, will you accompany Megatron and make sure he gets as much as the others do, not more and not less." The two nodded, and left with him.

"Sir, may I ask something?" Arcee said.

"Of course" he responded.

"I would like to visit Jack for a short while, if that is okay."

"You can go Arcee, but I expect you to come back immediately when needed."

"Of course, sir, thank you" she said, and walked away. That same afternoon, she went to Earth, to visit her partner.

oOoOoOo

Two days after Arcee had left, Bumblebee was on patrol near Kaon. He hadn't spotted any strange activity in weeks, so he was more than surprised when he saw an energon trail. He decided to follow it, and it led him to and old ruin. The trail stopped near a pile of metal panels, and there was nothing else to be seen. The pile had obviously fallen from the top of the ruin, and laid against a wall. Bumblebee moved a plate, revealing an opening into the ruin.

"Guys," he said through his comm. link, "if you don't hear from me in 15 minutes, you'd better come looking for me." He walked inside, where the energon trail continued. It was a small hallway where he was walking, with a door at the end. He transformed his weapon, and walked slowly towards the door. When he opened it, he saw a slightly lit room, with someone lying in the corner. He couldn't immediately tell who it was, but he could tell that he was hurt. Badly. He slowly and quietly approached, slightly lowering his weapons, and trying to see who he was dealing with. As he was finally standing next to the body, he wondered why he hadn't recognised him immediately. It was the same mech that nearly destroyed his T-cog. Starscream.

"What happened to you?" he muttered, more to himself than to the seeker. He turned his body so that he could have a better look, and then he saw them. Scratches and wounds covered his entire frame, with energon leaking out. "Bumblebee to warship," he said immediately, "I need a groundbridge. **Now**."

With Knockout's assist, Bumblebee had been able to carry Starscream into the med. bay. "What happened to him?" Knockout asked.

"I don't know, I found him like this."

"Hmm… These wounds are old, a month at least. Perhaps even two." He suddenly stopped and asked: "_Why _are we helping him again?"

"For the same reason we gave Megatron energon. The war is over, and if anyone needs help, we will give it. Optimus would have wanted it." Knockout nodded, and continued working. "Will he survive?" Bee asked.

"If he can survive what Megatron did to him for all those years, he would be fixed up and ready to go in a week. However… The wounds are old and he has already lost a lot of energon. I'm even surprised he made it this far." Bumblebee shivered at the words. He had known the 'relationship' between Megatron and his second in command had never been a good one, everyone had known that, but he had never given it a second thought. Looking at Starscream like this, he didn't _want _to know the things Megatron had done to him.

"I'd better go tell Ultra Magnus" he said, and left.

Knockout watched the yellow 'bot go, and continued to work on the ex-commander. "I cannot do this alone" he said to himself, and opened a comm. link. "Bumblebee, will you please ask Ratchet if he would come to Cybertron? I am in need of assist."

oOoOoOo

Ratchet was at base on Earth, together with Arcee and the kids. Arcee had been through a rough time, they all did, but she had really needed the company of Jack, Ratchet noticed. The four were talking about Cybertron when he received the message of Bumblebee. "Ratchet," he said, "Knockout asks if you would come here. He needs an extra pair of hands."

"What is the situation?" he asked.

"Bad. Very bad."

"Do I have to come back as well?" Arcee asked.

"It might be better that you do, soldier" Ultra Magnus said. "We never know what else is coming, and we might need your assistance in the next few days."

"B- but you just got here" Jack said.

"Yeah," Miko added, "It's been months, and you've only been here for two days!"

"Don't worry," Arcee said, "when things have calmed down, I'll come back right away. Okay?" They nodded, and only a second later, a spacebridge opened. The two arrived at the warship, and Ratchet went to the med. bay immediately. "Who is it?" Arcee asked.

Smokescreen and Bumblebee remained silent, as Wheeljack said: "It's Screamer." Her eyes widened and she ran to the med. bay. She stormed in, and saw Ratchet and Knockout work on the seeker in stasis.

"Why are you helping him?!" she yelled as she pointed her guns at him.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and Ultra Magnus said: "We help him because the war is over. If we don't help him, he dies."

"And what is so wrong about that?" she hissed. "He killed Cliffjumper."

"Arcee, I think it would be best if you would remove yourself from the area" he said with a calm yet firm voice. She lowered her weapons and shook off his hand, then walked away.

"That went well" Knockout said.

oOoOoOo

Arcee was walking through the hallways, arms crossed and head low. To anyone else it might have seemed she was just walking around to calm down, not really going anywhere, but she knew exactly where she was going: the vault. Though Starscream _really _pissed her off, he had reminded her of the other 'Con that hat killed her partner. Airachnid. When the Decepticons had destroyed their first base, they had taken everything, including the spider. She had figured Airachnid would be placed in their vault, locked away and under heavy protection. She walked in, only to find it completely empty. Of course, a lot of things were missing, they had robbed the place two months ago when they had to fight Unicron and his army. But Airachnid was nowhere to be seen. Arcee did find the pod she has managed to trap the spider in, but it was broken and empty. "Where are you…" she whispered, staring at the pod. She wanted to know so badly. A sudden idea went through her mind. She could always ask Megatron, couldn't she? "That's crazy" she said to herself. Was it? After all, he _did _come to them, asking for energon, and they had given it. Besides, war was over, and it was only a question. _'Fine' _she thought. _'Tomorrow, I'll ask him tomorrow.' _

…

**So, that was the first chapter! I hope you liked it, and a huge thanks for reading! :D **


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's the new chapter! I'm sorry, I didn't upload as soon as I had hoped, but I just couldn't get myself to like it enough to upload. So, here it is, after a **_**lot **_**of work. ;)**

…

Bumblebee was on the bridge when Arcee walked in. "I'll be out for an hour or two. Call me if you need me?"

"Sure" Bee said. "Where are you going?"

"Just out for a drive. To get my mind off things" she lied.

"Arcee, are you all right?" he asked.

She sighed, and quietly said: "I just don't see _why _we have to help him."

"Because Optimus would have helped him."

"You don't understand" she said, and turned away.

"Yes, I do." He put his hand on her shoulder and made her look at him. "Cliffjumper was my friend too. And Starscream _did _almost destroy my T-Cog."

"I know" she sighed. "Just- call me if you need me?"

"Will do" he smiled, and she left.

She drove some circles, gathering her courage for what she was about to do. It wasn't that easy for her, going to one of the largest mechs she had ever seen. When Optimus had lost his memory, and they tried to get it back, Megatron had held her in one hand, pushed against a wall. One hand! And it hadn't been the only time she had been intimidated and basically scared by him. In fact, he scared her every time she saw him. She just didn't show. But she knew she had to get over that fear. Besides, she was only going to ask him one question. What could go wrong?

oOoOoOo

She arrived at Kaon, and was looking at Darkmount. A shiver ran down her spine, she had never liked the place. She took in a deep breath, not that she needed to breathe, but it calmed her down. She had learned it from Jack, he did it all the time. The femme walked into the tower, slightly surprised that it was completely empty. All of the upper floors were abandoned as well, and she was starting to fear that Megatron might be gone too. When she entered the top floor, the throne room, she saw to her relief that she had been wrong. Megatron _was _there, and so was Shockwave. They both looked up, one surprised and the other, well, he didn't have any facial expressions, so she couldn't really tell.

"I'm surprised to see you here" Megatron said. "What is it that you want?"

"I would like to ask you something, if you don't mind."

Megatron took a quick glance at Shockwave, who nodded and left. "And how can I be of your service?" he continued.

"Before you destroyed our first base on Earth, I managed to capture Airachnid in a stasis pod. After the attack, you placed her inside your vault. I've checked the vault, but her pod is empty."

"And you wish to know what happened" he said. It hadn't been a question, but she nodded anyway. "The truth is, I don't exactly know."

"What do you mean, you don't know?" she said, and her eyes widened.

"Allow me to explain. She got out of the pod, and was on a rampage tour with her Insecticons. Soundwave bridged her out, to a location he had yet to inform me of. Unfortunately, things started escalating quickly, and he never got the chance to tell me _where _exactly he had sent her."

"So the only one who knows where she is, is Soundwave?" He nodded. "But… don't you keep track of where your groundbridge opens?"

"We do, but we use our space- and groundbridge a lot, we sometimes lose track." She sighed in frustration. _'Great. The only one who knows where Airachnid is, is currently somewhere in the shadow zone.' _"Now, I answered your question, you answer mine" he said. "Where is Soundwave?"

She bit her lip for a second, not really knowing whether to answer or not. He _had _told her what he knew, even if it didn't help her out that much. Well, her answer wouldn't be so different. "We don't know. He's somewhere in the shadow zone. He can see and hear us, but we can't see him." His eyebrow lifted in a disbelief, and she explained: "Jack, Miko and Raf once got stuck in there. We managed to get them out, and during our final battle on Earth, they got the idea to imprison Soundwave in there."

"So you can get him out?" he asked.

"For that, you would have to know where he is. We don't so no. We cannot."

"It's a shame" Megatron grumbled. "I would have liked to know where Airachnid went."

"Don't try to manipulate me, Megatron. It won't work. We _really _can't get him out of there."

"Are you sure?" he said, and took a step towards her. He was towering over her, and it gave her the creeps.

"I'm very sure" she said, and took a step back. "Now, if you don't mind, I have a team to attend to." She transformed, and drove off as fast as she could. Megatron watched her leave, and grinned in amusement. These were going to be interesting days, he just knew it.

oOoOoOo

Only 30 minutes after Arcee had left, Bulkhead entered the bridge, annoyed and grumpy. "What's the matter, 'Bulk?" 'Bee said.

He grumbled and said: "Some vehicons didn't show up at the construction of the buildings yesterday, and neither did they today. Of course no-one seems to know where they went."

"And about how many are we speaking?"

"Five or so, not that much, but if they skip their tasks, the others might start doing so as well."

"Don't worry 'Bulk, we'll find 'em. Until then, make sure no-one else disappears, I'll patrol around the construction site. 'Kay?"

"Sure" he said, still a little grumpy. Talking about grumpy, Ratchet walked in. "How's Screamer?" Bulk asked.

"He's stable" the doctor grumbled. "And he'll be waking up soon. Perhaps you should go to the medic bay and keep an eye on him, for when he does. I don't like him being here, and he won't like it either."

"We will" 'Bee said. Ratchet remained on the bridge, and Bulkhead and Bumblebee headed for the med. bay.

"To be honest, I don't like helping that son of a glitch for the slightest bit" Bulkhead grumbled.

"I don't blame you. Starscream is one of the mechs I really don't want to help." He sighed. "But we made a promise to Optimus, and that is one I intend to keep." Bulkhead nodded, muttering some more, until they arrived at the med. bay.

"Ah, you're here" Knockout said when they walked in. "Now I don't have to look around my shoulder every second, afraid that he might be awake and trying to kill me." The three of them glanced at the seeker in stasis, reassured that he was exactly that: in stasis.

"How did you even get him fixed up so soon?" 'Bee asked. "I thought you said it would take a few days if you would have gotten to him sooner."

"That was without Ratchet. Though he might have his grumpy moods, I have to admit, he is one great medic." A sudden beep on Starscream spark- and mind monitor drew all of their attention. "He's waking up!"

Bulkhead transformed his blasters immediately, and Bumblebee glanced at him. "Just in case" he used as an excuse.

Starscream grumbled and moaned in pain, and opened his eyes. "Wha- where am I?" he demanded. He tried to sit up straight, but his hand went to his head immediately and he fell back down.

"Easy Starscream" Knockout hushed. Starscream looked around, and noticed he was in the medic bay on the warship.

"Why am I here?" he hissed.

"I found you a couple of days ago" Bumblebee said. "You were wounded and weak, almost dead. If I hadn't brought you here, you would probably be dead by now." The seeker looked down, not knowing what to say. He suddenly felt a bit guilty for hissing at them, while they were the ones who saved him. It was strange, because he barely felt sorry for anything he said to others.

"What happened to you anyway?" Bulkhead asked.

"Angry Predacons did" he answered in his normal tone, pushing away the guilt. "There I was, minding my own business when they suddenly start attacking me!"

"Hmm, where have I heard that before?" Knockout asked sarcastically.

"I swear! They probably were angry for-"

"- you bossing them around all the time?" the medic said. "Face it Starscream, with the way you treated them, you had it coming." Starscream grumbled, but said nothing else. They heard a door slide open, and Arcee walked in. Starscream shrieked, and searched for cover behind Bulkhead.

"Oh joy, he's awake" she said. "Don't worry, Screamer. I've got more important things on my mind than you."

"Oh? I mean- of course. Silly of me" he said, and slowly laid himself on the berth again. "Urgh, dizzy…"

"I told you to stay down" Knockout sighed. "And don't you dare get back up before I allow you to."

"More important things?" 'Bee asked Arcee. "Such as?"

"Airachnid."

"Urgh, that wretch" Starscream spat out. "Haven't seen her since that incident with Silas."

"Silas? Incident? What?" Bulkhead said.

"Thanks, Starscream" Knockout said sarcastically. "Now I've got to explain _that _to them." He sighed, and started telling what had happened. Starting with experimenting on Silas, all the way to Airachnid killing him and being bridged out of here by Soundwave- of course, leaving out the _'You're no Breakdown, though I must confess I have always admired your lustrous finish'_. The others remained silent for a bit, startled by what they just heard. They didn't know what they were shocked about most, the terracons, or Knockout experimenting on the body of his former partner.

"This is _bad_" Bulkhead said. "And how do we know Airachnid wasn't infected herself?"

"We don't" Knockout explained.

"We _have _to find out where she went" Arcee said. "And the only one who knows her location, is Soundwave."

"Wouldn't Megatron know where she is?" Bumblebee asked.

"No. I already asked him."

"Wait, _What_?! When?"

"I just did" she admitted. "Sorry I didn't tell you immediately."

"That doesn't matter" Knockout said. "We have to figure out what to do next."

"Yeah" Bulkhead said. "If Airachnid is still on Earth, with her Insecticon army, we have a problem!"

"But if she isn't there, we have to find out quickly" 'Bee said. "I wouldn't be surprised if Soundwave wanted her as far as possible. What if she's _here_?"

"Don't you think we would have heard from her by now?" Knockout asked.

"Hmm, I don't think so" Starscream said. They glanced at him, and he continued: "Airachnid is the type that waits before she strikes- and strikes hard. _If _she's here, she's waiting."

"What if we try to get Soundwave out of the shadow zone?" Bee said suddenly.

"We can't, we'd have to know his location for that" Arcee said.

"Not exactly. We can always try to send someone of us into the shadow zone, find him, and then come back with him."

"That's crazy," 'Bulk said, "but it could work."

"I think we'd better inform Ultra Magnus about this" Arcee said. "I'll go tell him." She left, and as soon as she left, Starscream sighed in relief.

"I believe I should thank you all" he said. The others were surprised at what he said, but he simply continued. "I know you didn't have to help me, but you did anyway. Thank you." He looked around, and finished in his ordinary tone: "But Primus help you if you tell Arcee I said that." He was changing. He knew it, and the others noticed it as well. He had to gain humility, or things would not be ending well for him.

…

**Phew! That's it for this chapter, please fav/follow/review, and thanks for reading! ^^**


	3. Chapter 3

**This chapter is a bit shorter than the others, but I hope you enjoy it anyway!**

…

The Autobots had decided to send Bumblebee to the shadow zone. He was still the best scout there was, and if anyone had a chance of finding Soundwave, it was him. All preparations were made, and they would be able to make contact via a texting-like program. They wouldn't be able to see or hear him, but they thought it would probably work to text, considering it had worked with Jack, Miko and Raf. They had also flown back to Earth, because they needed two bridges, and the Autobot bridge couldn't reach Cybertron. So they were getting him in the shadow zone on Earth, and they would try to get him back in this very place too. Bumblebee just had to stay on the ship until they had reached Cybertron again, and then he could start looking.

"Good luck, soldier" Ultra Magnus said.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Arcee asked. She still wasn't convinced it was such a good idea. Not only because if something went wrong they could lose him forever, but also because everyone seemed to be forgetting _who _they were looking for.

"Don't worry Arcee, I'll be fine" he reassured her.

"Opening the groundbridge in three… Two…" Ratchet said from the base. "…One." Two bridges appeared, one opened by Ratchet and the other by Knockout. Bumblebee disappeared, and Smokescreen went to the communication panel immediately.

"No need for that" Wheeljack said. "He can still hear us. Bumblebee, are you all right? Did you get in the shadow zone?" Merely a few seconds later, a text message appeared on the comm. panel.

[I am, no worries to be made. You can set course for Cybertron.]

"Opening the groundbridge… now" Knockout said. A spacebridge appeared right in front of the ship, and they flew back to Cybertron. When they arrived, another text message appeared.

[I'm going to search the ship first, maybe he stayed here.]

"Let us know if you find something" Bulkhead said.

[Will do.]

oOoOoOo

Bumblebee was walking through the corridors. He had been searching for almost an hour now, and still nothing. The shadow zone was a strange place. Things lost a bit of colour, they looked greyer than usual. It was like he was walking in a dream. "Soundwave?!" he yelled, hoping that the mech could hear him. No response. Bumblebee sighed. He had searched the entire warship, and had found nothing.

[He isn't on the warship] he sent to his team. [I'm going to search Cybertron, starting with Kaon. Okay?]

It took a few seconds for the answer to come, and it said: [That might be a good place to go next. Tell us when you're there.]

[Understood] he sent back, and the search continued. He drove to Kaon, wondering if they would ever find him. _'We have to' _he thought. _'If we don't, we have a serious problem.' _On the way to Kaon, he sometimes stopped driving, transformed, and looked around. He called for Soundwave, but there was never an answer. He repeated this a couple of times, until he arrived at Kaon.

[Guys, I'm here] he sent.

[Be careful, soldier.] Bumblebee snickered. _'I have a pretty good idea of who typed that' _he thought. He entered the tower with a shiver running down his spine. He looked around all the time, making sure he didn't miss the smallest spot. When he was somewhere on the middle floor of the tower he suddenly stopped, and heard a strange yet familiar sound. Laserbeak!

"Laserbeak, where are you?!" he yelled. The sound grew louder, and when he turned around, he saw the little drone fly. "Laserbeak, will you take me to Soundwave please?" The drone circled around Bumblebee, and then flew away. Bumblebee followed him right away, running as fast as he could. He followed him all the way to the top of the tower, and saw Megatron there. Next to him was Shockwave, but they didn't see Bumblebee. And he didn't mind them either. All his attention was focussed on the black and purple mech in the middle of the room. Soundwave. He stood in a rather hostile position, and they stared at each other, saying nothing for a few moments. Bumblebee didn't exactly _know _what to say, so he simply started with a clumsy "Hi."

"_I'm surprised to see you here. What is it that you want?" _Bumblebee recognised Megatron's voice.

"I want to get you out of here" he said. "We need your help." The hostile position disappeared, and he took a small step closer. He looked at the black and yellow 'bot, and then nodded. It was a simple nod, but it brought a huge smile on 'Bee's face. "Great!" he said. "Just give me a second, I'm going to inform the others."

[Guys, I found him! We're coming to the warship immediately!] he sent.

[Good work, let us know when you're here] they answered.

[Of course!] he sent back.

He looked back at Soundwave, still with a smile on his face. "We have to get back to the warship" he said. Soundwave nodded again, and followed him out of the tower.

"Did you see everything? I mean, the end of the war?" Bumblebee asked, smile suddenly gone and eyes serious. Soundwave nodded, again, and showed the video he had filmed of Megatron coming to his senses again, and ending the Decepticons. The video also showed Optimus, telling he had joined with the All Spark. Bumblebee looked away, trying not to show the pain in his eyes. But Soundwave noticed it anyway, anyone would have noticed it. He had never cared for the Prime, but he remembered how he had felt when Megatron had died, and he hadn't been able to do anything about it. He guessed the 'bot must feel the exact same way. He laid his hand on 'Bee's shoulder, looking at him, trying to comfort him. Bumblebee was clearly surprised, but smiled anyway. They reached the bottom of the tower only a minute later, transformed and flew/drove to the warship. They didn't say anything else during the journey, and they arrived there quickly.

[We're here, set course to Earth] he sent as soon as they were back on the bridge.

"Got it" Wheeljack said. The ship started moving and a huge spacebridge appeared.

"Actually, do you know anything of what's going on?" Bumblebee asked, and Soundwave nodded.

"_So the only one who knows where she is, is Soundwave?" _'Bee recognised the voice of Arcee.

"Of course," he said with a grin, "always listening."

They arrived back on Earth, and got into position. "I'm opening your way back… Now" Knockout said, and a groundbridge appeared. The two walked through, 'Bee first, and then Soundwave.

"Welcome back, soldier" Ultra Magnus said. He looked at Soundwave, and continued: "You too, welcome back." While the spacebridge to Cybertron opened and they went through, he asked: Are you already informed of the situation?" Soundwave nodded, and he gestured that we had to follow him. They had arrived back home, and followed him to the deck. There, he looked up to the sky, and pointed to a moon.

"You sent her _there_?" Smokescreen squeaked.

Soundwave nodded, and Bulkhead said: "Well, look at it from the bright side: now she can't harm Earth." But there was nothing bright in his voice, only concern.

"Soundwave, I have another question for you." It was the first thing Arcee said since he came back. "Do you know if Airachnid got infected or not?" He stepped towards her, and showed a video. She saw the vault, and Silas opening Airachnids pod. He skipped a part, to where Airachnid was pushed against the wall and Silas leaned over her. Suddenly Airachnid escaped form the grip, and jumped up. Soundwave rewound a little, and zoomed into their faces. Arcee saw Silas' tongue moving towards her neck, and right before Airachnid jumped up, his tongue bit her neck. I was only for a short moment, but it was enough. Airachnid was infected. "Scrap."

…

**That's it for now, please fav/follow/review, and thanks for reading! ^^**


	4. Chapter 4

**So this is a bit of a shorter chapter, but **_**SOMEONE **_***coughcoughmusecough* decided to take a week off and leave me for scrap. This took **_**for ever **_**to write, and I hope you're not disappointed. I hope you enjoy!**

…

Soundwave was flying towards Kaon. He had told the Autobots everything he knew, and was free to go, in one condition. They had asked him to keep an eye open, to search for a sign of Airachnid. If he would find anything, he would report to Ultra Magnus. He had agreed with the terms, and had left immediately. Darkmount was now coming in view, and Soundwave sped up a little. He could see Megatron, and Megatron could see him. The grey mech stood up, and his eyes widened. He would know that drone everywhere. Shockwave stood next to him, and was as surprised as Megatron was. The drone arrived, transformed end knelt before his leader. Megatron laid his hand on his shoulder, and said: "Welcome back." Soundwave looked up, and started showing the recordings of the past events.

oOoOoOo

After Soundwave had told Airachnid was on one of the moons, Bulkhead and Bumblebee started worrying more about the missing Vehicons. No-one had heard from them anymore, and though no-one else had gone missing, they _had _to find out where they had gone. So Bumblebee kept his promise to Bulkhead, and started patrolling around the construction site. He had been patrolling for two days now, and had found absolutely nothing. He was driving between some buildings and was about to open a comm. link to Bulkhead to tell what he had- or hadn't- found, when he heard a strange noise.

"What the…" he said to himself. He transformed, and went to the place where the noise had come from. It was between two buildings, or rather two ruins. "Hello?!" Bumblebee yelled. "Anyone there?!" He couldn't see in the alley, there were too many shadows. So he decided to stay out in the open, where there was light and he could see. "Hello?!" he yelled again. He was about to turn away, thinking he had just imagined the noise, when he heard a hiss coming out of the darkness. A shiver ran through his systems, and he transformed his weapons. Slow, heavy footsteps were heading his way. He opened a comm. link and said: "Bulk', I _think _I might need some backup."

"I'm on my way, 'Bee."

"And 'Bulk?" 'Bee said as another hiss came out of the shadows, "Please hurry." The footsteps grew louder and just as Bumblebee was convinced he/she/it would be coming out of the shadows, the noises stopped. He didn't hear anything anymore, so he took a small step closer. With his guns still armed, he took another one. Suddenly, a vehicon jumped his way. Bumblebee managed to shoot it away, but four others were already attacking him. They pushed him back, making him fall to the ground. "Bulkhead, **now**" he yelled into his comm. link as he shot two back. The other two jumped him, and pinned him to the ground.

"Almost there!" Bulkhead responded. Meanwhile, the first one got up, and stumbled towards him.

"Energonnn…" he hissed. He stood in front of the yellow Autobot and revealed his tongue, when Bumblebee heard the sound of a familiar engine. The vehicon however didn't notice it, or perhaps just ignored it. 'Bee struggled to get free, but the others still had him pinned down. The one in front of him brought his tongue to 'Bee's neck, and just as he was about to bite him, he got pushed to the side. The grip on 'Bee's arms loosened, and he finally managed to break free.

"Took you long enough" he said. He shot one that had pinned him down, hit him in the spark, and he off-lined immediately. "Aim for the spark!" he yelled. Bulkhead did exactly that, and punched the Vehicon in his spark. He off-lined as well. 'Bulk turned around and saw the last one falling to his knees, with a hole in his chest from where 'Bee's blade had been. They thought all the Vehicons were dead, but they heard another hiss. It came from one of the two that Bumblebee had shot earlier.

"Uh-oh" Bulkhead said. "This one is still alive. What do we do with him?"

"I say we take him to Ratchet. He might want to examine him." Bulkhead nodded, and knocked him out.

"I don't want to get bitten while I carry him back to the warship" he said.

"Bumblebee to Nemesis. Bulkhead and I need a bridge."

"One bridge coming up" Wheeljack answered through the comm. link. A green light appeared, and Bulkhead picked up the knocked out Vehicon before entering the groundbridge.

oOoOoOo

"Your statistics are improving rapidly, Starscream" Ratchet said to the wounded seeker. Well, not really wounded, not anymore. Once the major wounds had been closed and his energon levels had been topped up, his healing systems had started functioning properly, and he was almost free to go. Almost. "You should be able to walk freely again, but you cannot fly yet." Starscream wanted to protest, but was cut off immediately. "Let me put it this way: if I see you _thinking _of transforming, I will pin you back on this table and you will not come off until I personally allow you to. Understood?"

"Fine, no flying. Got it" Starscream grumbled. He heard a small snicker coming from across the room, where Knockout was standing. "Not. A. Word" he hissed quietly. Knockout wanted to say something, but the doors sliding open interrupted him. Bumblebee and Bulkhead walked in, with a knocked out Vehicon.

"Uhh, Ratchet, we've got a problem" Bulkhead said. The medic turned around, and saw the Vehicon he was carrying. "This is one of those five missing Vehicons. And, uhh, he's infected."

Ratchet's eyes widened. "Put him here" he said as he pointed to an empty berth. Starscream and Knockout backed away slowly, keeping their eyes on the 'terracon'. They both had been chased by the kind, and had pictures of them printed in their brains. A second experience wasn't welcome at all. While Bumblebee and Bulkhead were explaining what had happened, Ratchet's eyes fell on the two. "By the All Spark, what is wrong with you two?" he snarled.

"You haven't seen them the way we have. They are pure **EVIL**!" Starscream yelped. Bumblebee wanted to say how funny it was hearing that from _him_, but decided not to.

"For the record," he said instead, "I've had a close look myself. As I was saying, I've been attacked by _five _of them. At once."

"So, Airachnid was here, on Cybertron, and no longer on that moon" Ratchet stated.

"Not necessarily" Knockout said, eyes still fixed on the Vehicon. "She left with her army. It could have been an Insecticon as well, who got infected by her."

"Well Insecticon or not," Bulkhead said, "If they keep on sucking energon and infecting others, we have a serious problem."

"Knockout, you said the infection was created by a mixture of dark energon and synth-en, right?" Ratchet asked.

"Yes," he responded, "But the formula of the synthetic energon was still incomplete."

"What are you thinking, Ratch?" Bumblebee asked.

"Perhaps I can try looking for a cure…" he said quietly. "But I can never do it alone."

"I know I'm not the _greatest _scientist," Knockout said (to everyone's surprise), "but perhaps I can help."

"If there's anything I can do as well, let me know" Starscream said. "This is all my fault. I'm the one who recommended to mix the synth-en and dark energon."

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" Knockout said with a grin. "Over and over again." Starscream grumbled, and Bumblebee chuckled.

"Perhaps you canhelp, I'll ask Ultra Magnus if he knows something you can do." The seeker nodded, happy they would let him help. Maybe they wouldn't because they didn't trust him enough, but then they didn't show. Yes, he was grateful for that.

…

**Nope, nope, not happy. *Cries* *I'm sorry I'm such a disappointment…* -Ahum-  
Okay, so that was it for this update, I'm sorry it isn't more. Anyway, please fav/follow/review and a huge thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Late update, again, but somehow every time I try to do some real action, my muse goes *poof, I'm out! Laterrrr!*. **_**Stupid muse mutter mutter… **_**In other words: no real action. Now, off with the story! **

…

Ultra Magnus was in his personal office when Bumblebee walked in. "Sir," he asked, "can we talk about Starscream?"

"Of course, soldier," he said, "what's bothering you?"

Bumblebee sat down, and explained: "I feel like he's changing, and he clearly _wants _to change. He offered to help the team."

Ultra Magnus nodded, and said: "I see. And do you trust him?"

"I don't know, sir. We have had quite some problems with him and he isn't known as the most loyal mech, but as I said, he's changing."

Ultra Magnus thought for a second, and then said: "Very well. We'll start by letting him do some surveillance, but no big missions yet. That is, if they would occur. Is there anything else?"

"No sir" Bumblebee said, and stood up. "Thank you."

oOoOoOo

"Good news, Starscream" 'Bee said as he entered the med. bay. "Ultra Magnus said you can help, if you want."

Starscream's eyes widened. "Really?" he said surprised. He never thought they would _really _let him help. After all, his reputation did say 'traitorous' and 'backstabber'.

"Yup, really. For now, it are only patrolling missions though, until something else happens."

"When do we leave?" Starscream asked, obviously glad that he could finally leave the med. bay.

"Almost" he smiled. He walked into the backroom where Ratchet and Knockout were working on a cure. "How's it going?"

"Slow" Ratchet grumbled. That was all Bumblebee had to hear to know it was better to leave. He walked away, with Starscream right behind him. When they had left the med. bay, he said: "We have to go to the bridge first, to see where we have to patrol." Starscream just nodded, and didn't say anything. He looked at the seeker, and asked: "Starscream? Are you okay?"

"I just wonder- why did you help me? I mean, you could have left me for scrap, it would have saved you quite some energon."

"I helped you because it was the right thing to do. I think everyone deserves a new chance after a war, no matter what they might have done."

Though Starscream was obviously taller than the yellow 'bot, he felt small. He felt small because he had never seen greatness the way he did now. 'Great' used to mean powerful to him. Strong. Mighty. But now, it meant so much more. He could understand the Autobot morals, and why people had followed Optimus Prime. He realised that greatness wasn't determined by the lives you took. It was by the lives you spared. "Thank you" he said quietly.

Bumblebee looked at him and laid his hand on his shoulder. "No problem."

"_Bumblebee!" _suddenly sounded through his comm. link.

"Bulkhead, what is it?" he answered.

"_Problems. We need you on the bridge."_

"Starscream and I were already on our way. We're almost there."

"What is it?" Starscream asked.

"I don't know, Bulkhead needs us on the bridge." They started to walk faster, and when they got there, they noticed that everyone –except Ratchet and Knockout of course- were there. "What's the problem?"

"More vehicons have disappeared" Arcee said. Starscream firstly didn't understand what the huge commotion was about. Missing vehicons were never good, but they acted like someone had died. "One hundred fifty of them" she finished. Okay, now he understood.

"How many?!" Bumblebee yelped. "And no-one noticed?!"

"A big construction site was attacked by surprise, they never had a chance" Bulkhead growled.

"This is bad…" Arcee said. "It's one thing trying to find _five _of them. But one hundred fifty? We're never going to find all of them!"

"Unless they try to act smart" Wheeljack said. "Everyone knows you have a bigger chance of survival in a group. And how hard can it be to find a group of that many brainwashed vehicons? We find one, we find them all. And then we just have to spray that cure on them."

"_If _it's already finished by then" Smokescreen said. "Who _knows _how long it could take until-"

A loud noise from the corridor interrupted him. It sounded like footsteps, _heavy _footsteps. They grew louder until they stopped, and a second later the door slid open. Starscream yelped, and jumped back. The last time he saw the ones who were in the doorway, they nearly killed him. Predaking, Darksteel and Skylinx stood there, covered in wounds and scratched. When Predaking saw Starscream, he growled and entered.

"You! How do you still live! It doesn't matter, I will solve that little error in no time" he said as he walked in the seeker's direction. But Bumblebee and Bulkhead stood in front of Starscream without hesitation, forming a shield between him and the angry predacon.

"I hope for you you're not here for revenge, because if you are, I'm afraid you might be leaving disappointed" Bumblebee said. Though he would never admit it, Starscream was scared. Understatement: he was terrified. But he noticed he wasn't just afraid for his own life, but afraid of that of Bumblebee and Bulkhead as well. He had felt the predacon's power first handed, and didn't wish that for either of the 'bots in front of him.

But Predaking stopped walking and said: "No, luckily for you, it is not."

"But this is" Darksteel said, and threw something on the floor, right between himself and the Autobots. Arcee gasped when she saw what it was, and so did the others. It was the head of an Insecticon.

"Joy…" Wheeljack said, followed by a "That's disgusting" coming from Smokescreen.

"Does anyone _mind _telling where **they **suddenly came from? I thought they were sent away by Soundwave!" Predaking growled.

"They were," Ultra Magnus said, "to one of these moons. Were there any vehicons with them?"

"No" Skylinx said. "Should there have been?"

"No."

"Then why did you ask?"

Ultra Magnus didn't know whether to answer, so Smokescreen did for him. "Because one hundred fifty of them have gone missing. They are probably infected as well, like these insecticons."

"Infected?" Darksteel asked.

"You didn't think the whole 'I want to suck all of the energon out of you'-phenomenon is normal, did you?" Arcee said.

When he didn't answer, Bumblebee said: "It's a kind of disease passed on when bitten by an infected mech or femme." Starscream shuddered. He had seen it up close, and it hadn't been a pretty sight. "In other words, pay attention when you go back out there."

"But until then" Ultra Magnus said, "you might need some medical attention. If you want, you can let Knockout check your vital systems."

"Gestures hardly ever come without a price" Predaking said. And he was right.

"We don't ask much in return. Just for you to let us know if you happen to notice some other strange activity, and perhaps a helping hand if Airachnid would show up with her Insecticon army."

He thought for a short moment, and then said: "Deal." The three left and headed towards the med. bay, as Ultra Magnus informed Knockout of the three 'guests' that were coming his way. When Starscream was sure they weren't coming back, he reappeared from Bulkhead and Bumblebee's 'safety zone'.

"Thank you" he muttered quietly. He knew he had to change, he had realized it a few days earlier, but that didn't mean he liked it. The small and weak feeling never left, and it was starting to frustrate him. Bumblebee noticed.

"Hey, Starscream, we _do_ have to patrol, remember? Still want to go?" he asked.

"Of course," he said, not able to stay on the ship any longer with those three on board. "Let's go." They opened a groundbridge right outside the warship, allowing Bumblebee to get off the ship without risking falling to death. Starscream transformed immediately, and flew away as fast as he could.

"Whoa, Starscream, mind slowing down a bit?" Bumblebee laughed through the comm. link.

Starscream attempered his speed a bit, and chuckled. "Don't tell me you can't keep up with me. After all, I _have _heard rumours about some yellow and black muscle car that can double Knockout without a problem."

"Haha, have you now?" Bumblebee laughed proud when he had caught up with him.

"Hmm, yes," he said in his ordinary, patronizing tone, "but of course it are only rumours. It's probably all made up, nothing more than a little story."

"Is that… A challenge?"

"Hmm, perhaps…"

"Challenge accepted" Bumblebee said, speeding up and driving away as fast as he could.

…

**FINALLY! FINISHED! *starts crying of happiness* And It took me two fraggin' weeks. TWO WEEKS! Thank you muse, for the whole lot of nothing you've done. *mutter mutter*  
**_**Anyway… **_**I hope you like the new chapter, I tried to do some friendship thingy between Starscream and Bumblebee **_**(*Voice in my head: Nooooo, really?!*) **_**AHEM. So, please fav/follow/review, and thanks for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

Starscream and Bumblebee walked in laughing. The team was out on patrol, searching for the missing vehicons, only Arcee was left. Her eyebrow lifted when the duo saw her, and Starscream's laughter died. "Had fun?" she asked.

"Very" Bumblebee said with a smile, trying to lift the mood. "I basically outdrove a seeker, so yes, I had a _lot _of fun."

"Not fair," Starscream muttered, "you had a false start." Arcee smiled at that. It surprised the three of them, but no-one showed.

"If it only took a false start to beat a jet, the war would have ended a lot sooner, don't you think?" the femme said. He grumbled, and Bumblebee snickered. "Ultra Magnus asked for you to check up with Ratchet and Knockout when you returned, and that perhaps it would be better for you to stay there, in case something would happen."

"No problem" 'Bee said, and they turned away to leave.

"Not you, Starscream" Arcee interrupted them. "You have to stay here. Bulkhead can return any minute, and you can accompany him in the next sector he'll be searching."

Starscream gulped. "Of course" he said. Bumblebee looked at the two, nodded at Starscream, and then left. When he exited the room, so did all the warmth and comfort. The two who remained looked at each other, saying nothing, until Arcee moved. Starscream flinched, but then noticed she was just heading back for her computer. _'Of course' _he thought. _'More important things.' _She was typing some things and he was just walking around a bit, waiting for Bulkhead to return.

"Starscream?" she suddenly asked, "Are you afraid of me?"

He froze at her question. It would be ridiculous to answer 'yes', because then he would be throwing away the little bit of dignity he had left. But if he said 'no', she might consider it insulting and, well, he would be lying. So instead, he answered: "I saw the surveillance footage from when you found out I was being helped."

She sighed and said: "Yeah, I wish I could say I'm sorry for that, but I wouldn't want to lie." Her words were cold, but underneath he could sense sorrow, pain and grieve.

"I know saying sorry isn't nearly enough for what I've done" he said slowly. "If there was only something I could do to make things up to you."

She sighed in frustration. "I wish I would be able to tell you to leave, but for Bumblebee's sake, I won't. However… I _can _promise you, if you make _one _wrong move, only one, I will be the first line to carve out your spark. Are we clear on that?"

Starscream gulped. "Very."

"Good" she said, and turned back to her computer.

"And if I don't?" he asked.

She turned back to him and asked: "What do you mean?"

"If I don't mess up? Will you still hate me then."

"Maybe" she said. "We'll see." She turned around again, and Starscream smiled a bit. No, he had absolutely no intent of messing up this time. However, that smile quickly disappeared when the doors slid open, and a certain former warlord walked in. "Megatron" Arcee said surprised when she saw him. "What are you doing here?"

"Arcee," he grinned, "how lovely to see you again. And I see you have company. Starscream, I'm surprised to see you here?"

"Well, ahem-"

"He's here because we helped him. What's your excuse?" she said.

"I'm here because I- we- want to help. Soundwave noticed you have an infected captive, am I correct?"

"Yes, we do. Ratchet and Knockout are looking for a cure."

"Is it going well?" he said with both interest and concern.

"No, not really" she admitted.

"Perhaps Shockwave can help" he offered.

"That… Would really help a lot" Arcee admitted.

"Good," he said, "I'll send him here immediately."

"Thank you" she said.

"Is there anything else we can help with?"

"Not really" she said as she looked out of the window. "For now it's just keeping our eyes open, and pray the cure will be found in time, before we all get infected." Her gaze followed the sun, slowly sinking away behind Cybertron's horizon.

"Very well. If there is anything else we can do, let us know." Arcee flinched when she felt his hand on her shoulder. "I mean that." He turned away and left. When he walked out, Bulkhead walked in. He had a more than surprised look on his face.

"What did I miss?" he asked after the door had shut behind him.

"He offered to help" Arcee said serene. "I said Ratchet and Knockout are working on a cure and he said that Shockwave might be able to help. I accepted."

"Shouldn't that be Ultra Magnus' call? I mean, I don't want to be a pain, but he usually _does _decide these sort of things."

"Would it have made any difference if he would have approved, instead of her?" Starscream asked. "He would have accepted the offer _anyway_, so why disturb him for it?"

"Hmm, you're probably right. Never mind. Anyway, ready to leave?" he asked with a smile, patting- more like slamming- him on his back. "Time to roll with a **wrecker**!"

"Oh joy…" Starscream grumbled, and followed the big green 'bot out of the room. "We're not taking the groundbridge?"

"Nah, I can take some rough descending" he smiled.

"Of course you can."

"I remember driving through the Sea of Rust with the wreckers. The heavier the terrain, the better. It was awesome! No-one even got a scratch!"

"What was it like being a wrecker?" Starscream asked. He had never been part of such a close group. Of course, he was a seeker, but they never had each other's back the way Wreckers did. He really wondered what it was like. So when Bulkhead started telling about his group, he listened very careful, absorbing every word he said. it intrigued him, the way he talked about them. But in the end, he just had to ask: "Then why did you leave?"

Bulkhead thought about how to answer for a short while. "It was just- I had the feeling I could do more alongside Optimus. More for the cause. And of course, to roll with a Prime, it was amazing!" Starscream smiled at that. Bulkhead's enthusiasm was incredible, and the joy he showed when he talked about his past, well, it was something Starscream feared he'd never have.

oOoOoOo

Ultra Magnus had been listening very attentive to what Arcee had been saying. She had just informed him of Megatron's visit, and he said: "All right, inform our two medics of their future assist. I'll be there in a few minutes, so you can go out on patrol and I can guard the bridge."

"Copy that, sir. Until then I'll- what the…" She said as she saw something strange outside. "Hang on sir, I'll be right back." She stepped away from her computer and walked towards the window, eyes wide.

"Arcee, are you seeing this?" Bulkhead said through a comm. link.

"I am, what is it?" she asked.

"Arcee, Bulkhead, what is going on?" Ultra Magnus asked.

"Insecticons" Bulkhead said "A whole army of them. And they're coming our way."

…

**Cliff-hanger! Tehehe… Though I do have to apologize, because the next chapter is going to contain some action, and as you probably have noticed already, I basically suck at action scenes. I hope you liked it, ***_**voice in head: though not that much happened**_*** ***_**me: ShutUpStupidVoiceIHateYouGetOutOfMyMindGetAFuckingLifeYouLittlePieceOfShit**_*** Ahem… Sorry for that… Anyway, please fav/follow/review and thanks for reading! :3**


	7. Chapter 7

**Finally! Done! Now, I'm going to shut up and let you read the story. ^-^**

…

The entire ship was shaking. "Arcee! What is going on?!" Ratchet yelled through a comm. link.

"We're under attack by Insecticons" she responded, and opened a comm. link to Megatron immediately. "Megatron! We're under attack!"

"I noticed, I'm on my way. Shockwave is on his way as well, and so is Soundwave" he said, but didn't get an immediate response, because another blast hit and Arcee fell down.

"Hurry!" she yelled. Megatron didn't waste any time on confirming, but flew as fast as he could instead. Meanwhile, Arcee opened another comm. link, one to the entire team, _and _the (former) Decepticons. "Guys," she said, "We're under attack. I'm bridging you back immediately."

"Don't have to bridge me, Arcee, I'm already here" Ultra Magnus said.

"Who's attacking?" Wheeljack asked.

"Airachnid's army, but the spider herself seems to be missing" she said as she looked out of the window.

"I'm not surprised," Knockout said, "last time she attacked the warship, she was nowhere to be seen."

"That wretch flees with every opportunity she sees" Starscream added.

"Yeah, well the moment she'll show her face I'll shoot it off her body" the angry femme said as she opened the groundbridge to let Wheeljack through.

"Primus" he said as he looked out the window, "That's a _lot_ of bugs."

"And you haven't seen them up close" Bulkhead said as he walked- ran- in with Starscream.

"You guys okay?" Arcee asked without taking her eyes off the screen.

"Of course they are" Wheeljack said, " 'Bulk can take enough punches for the _two _of them."

"Well, as long as they weren't bitten, I'm not concerned" she said as another groundbridge opened to let Smokescreen through. A sudden increase of explosions drew their attentions, especially because they weren't the ones exploding.

"It's Megatron" Starscream said, seeing the Cybertronian jet fly outside.

"Well I say we go give him a hand" Smokescreen said.

"Now there's a good idea" Megatron said. You could almost see his typical grin.

"I'm already on my way" Bumblebee said through the comm. link.

"Be careful" Ratchet said, "The cure is far from complete."

"Shockwave," Arcee said while the rest left, "I'm bridging you directly to the med. bay."

"No, right now he's needed more on the field than in there" Megatron said.

"Understood." Concluding she had no further business on the bridge, she left to join the team.

oOoOoOo

Outside was a mess. Insecticons were all over the place, both dead and alive ones. So when Arcee got there, she shot the first Insecticon she saw, straight in the spark. Another one down, a countless more to go. A small group saw her, and flew towards her. "Energonnn…" they growled.

"Scrap!" she said, and jumped back while shooting them. Five more, four, three, now only two… But she couldn't shoot them anymore. They were too close, and jumped on top of her. She tried to get free, but they were too heavy. Only a second later, she was surprised by a sudden blast and a light on the backs of the Insecticons. They fell next to her on the floor. When she sat up, she saw Starscream standing a bit further away, arm pointed towards her, rocket launched. "Thank you" she said, and he nodded.

"No problem." But there were still hundreds of them flying over the place. They got into fighting positions, and shot as many Insecticons as possible. Side by side, backs against each other, she fought with her second least favourite person in the universe. But she didn't waste any time on thinking how much she hated him. She thought about survival, for herself, her planet and her team. She started to realise as well that Starscream was becoming a part of that team. _'Dammit, Arcee, focus!' _she thought.

A bit further away from them were Ultra Magnus and Megatron, battling some more Insecticons hand to hand. "Megatron, I need a hand!" Ultra Magnus said. An Insecticon was pushing him back, until he almost fell off the ship. A blast from behind him saved him, however, Megatron was standing in front of him. He turned around, and saw Shockwave standing down below. The two nodded to each other, and Shockwave started to climb up the ship. Ultra Magnus gave him the cover he needed, and he was up not that much later.

"Where's Soundwave?" Megatron asked. His question was answered immediately by the black drone flying over the scene. He fired at some more Insecticons, the ones that were targeting Wheeljack and Bulkhead.

"Thank you!" The big green 'bot said in return. He in his turn smashed the bug that wanted to attack Wheeljack, who threw a grenade. That grenade exploded in the middle of a group flying Insecticons attacking Bumblebee and Smokescreen.

"Guys," Smokescreen said, "I think we could really use those relics now."

"I'm on it!" Knockout responded through the comm. link.

"Thank y- ouch!" he half-responded when another Insecticon jumped him. _'Okay, mental note: Don't get distracted' _he thought. Shockwave saw this and ran towards him, shooting the Insecticon. The bug fell off the ship, transforming too late and crashing into the ground.

"Are you harmed?" Shockwave asked.

"No, I'm fine. Just a bit shaked up." The scientist nodded, and continued shooting their enemies.

"Relics, coming through!" Knockout yelled as he entered the scene. He was carrying the Phase Shifter, the Apex Armour, the Polarity Gauntlet and the Resonance blaster. Smokescreen went for the Phase Shifter immediately, Bumblebee took the Polarity Gauntlet, the Apex Armour went to Starscream and Smokescreen gave the Resonance blaster to Soundwave.

"I've had a first-hand look of how handy you are with this thing." Soundwave nodded, and took the weapon. Bumblebee started to swing them away, Smokescreen made them run into each other (which was a _pretty _funny sight), Soundwave blasted them off the ship, and Starscream beat the scrap out of them. But it was hard to hit them in the right places. Just swinging them back wasn't nearly enough. They simply kept on flying back, getting closer each and every time.

"We need something else" Arcee said.

"Knockout" Ultra Magnus said as he smashed another Insecticon, "go to the bridge and ask the Predacons for help. And bridge them here, instead of making them fly all the way."

"Understood, I'm on my way" he responded. Knockout was already in the corridors again, making his way towards the bridge. He decided to transform and drive, what was ten times faster.

"Knockout" Ratchet said through a comm. link, "how's the situation outside?"

"In one word: messy. There were more Insecticons than I can count."

"And Shockwave? Has he arrived?"

"Yeah, but trust me when I say that his help is needed more outside. They can use every help they can get."

"How about the Predacons?"

"I'm on my way to the bridge right now, going to ask them for help."

"Good, and when you're done, please come back to the med. bay. I think I might have an idea for the cure."

"Copy that" he responded, and said nothing more. He had arrived at the bridge, and went straight to the communication panel. Pressing some buttons, he tried to contact the Predacons. "Hello? Predaking? Darksteel, Skylinx? Anyone there?"

"This is Predaking. Knockout, is that you?" he responded.

"Yeah, and we have a problem. We're under attack by infected Insecticons."

"Has any of you been infected yet?"

"No, not yet. But we'll all be if we don't get any help soon."

"We're on our way."

"Wait, I'll open a groundbridge straight into the battle zone. I just need your coordinates."

"I'm sending them now" another voice said. Knockout saw them appear on the screen and opened a groundbridge immediately.

"Thank you" he said as he heard them walking through the portal.

oOoOoOo

Arcee was covering for her team, when she saw a groundbridge appear. The three Predacons flew through, and shot fire to the Insecticons immediately. The heat was so intense that she could feel it from where she was standing. It reminded her of the summer on Earth, in Jasper.

After the Predacons had arrived, things were over as quick as they had started. They were making sure every Insecticon was dead, and Ultra Magnus was thanking everyone for their help.

"Smokescreen, are you all right?" Bulkhead suddenly asked him. The 'bot _did _looked strange, optics less bright than usual.

"Yeah, just a little… dizzy." He suddenly fell to the ground, straight on his behind, and muttered: "I just need to sit for a moment…" Wheeljack ran over to him, and did a quick check.

"Uh-oh" he said quietly. "Doc, we have a problem" he said through a comm. link.

"What's the situation?" Ratchet responded.

"Bad, really bad" he said as he was watching the small bite-mark on Smokescreen's arm.

…

**I feel so evil right now… :D **

**And I am absolutely sorry *again*, but with those fragging exams coming up, I won't be able to write that much. *inner voice: Like that's going to make a difference… me: SHUT IT!" **

**But I plan on writing a lot during the spring, so I'll make it up to all of you! *please forgive me***

**Anyway, please fav/follow/review and thanks for reading! ^-^**


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